Life As She Knows It
by Queequegg
Summary: For April O'Neil, life as she knows it, is about to change. A story following April after she is forced to move into the lair to hide from Shredder and the Kraang. Set in the 2012 universe and immediately following the episode 'Karai's Vendetta' (canon, up to that episode).
1. Aftermath

April O'Neil had never had what she would call a 'normal' life. She grew up as the nerdy little redhead with freckles, braces and glasses. And she had been picked on relentlessly. On top of all that, her Dad's science career had them constantly moving to some new discovery, or museum, or lab which left April as the 'new kid' everywhere she went. Never staying in one place long enough to make any real connections.

And then, the summer after her 12th birthday, April lost her mom. And her father decided it was best to move back to New York City to be near his sister, their only remaining family. April had needed a new start in this home more then ever and had worked hard to start fresh. With her braces gone and glasses replaced with contacts, she was off to a good beginning, but somehow still felt like she didn't fit in.

So when April found herself befriending a group of mutated turtles and somehow becoming involved in some kind of alien conspiracy which had taken her Dad from her, she wasn't even all that surprised. Strange seemed to be normal for her. This however, did not make it any easier.

She had been trying her best to stay strong, to put on her brave face and move forward to find her kidnapped father. But after the last couple days, it was starting to wear on her. Her life was in danger, not only from the mysterious aliens who seem to have been actually targeting her from the beginning, but also from Shredder and the Foot clan. It seems her new friends had enemies of their own, and those enemies weren't afraid to go after April to get to them.

So now April finds herself retreating. Opting to stay hidden so that she can protect both herself and her aunt, with whom she had been staying since her father's disappearance. As much as she didn't like the idea of hiding, she knew that it was the best course of action. Karai had tried to take her today, and while she may have managed to win that particular fight, she knew that it had been dumb luck and that she should be grateful to even be alive. Master Splinter had been training her to be a kunoichi; and while it had given her a fighting chance, her mere weeks of training could never hold up to Karai's lifetime of experience. And every ache and bruise in her body could hold testament to that.

When she had first rendezvoused with the gang back at the lair, her adrenaline was still pumping and the victory of her fortunate win was still fresh in her mind, but now, as she lay here she realized just how banged up she actually was.

After taking the news that she would be staying hidden in the lair until the Kraang and the Shredder could be defeated, April had asked to be left alone. Donatello had offered his room to her, saying that he could camp in his lab until a better solution was planned out. His brother's had teased him mercilessly for his offer, and jokes about 'a girl in his room' and something about a 'flow chart' had been tossed around. April ignored their taunts and made sure that he new she had truly appreciated the chivalry.

Only an hour or two had passed as April lay on her back in Donnie's messy bunk, staring up at the ceiling and wondering when her life had gone from 'weird' to 'bat-shit crazy'. A light rap sounded at the door, pulling her mind back to the present.

"April?" A soft voice asked from the other side.

It was Donatello. She was impressed that he had waited as long as he did to come check on her.

"Come in."

He slowly opened the door and silently crept, in his ninja-like way into the darkened room, lit only by the desk lamp in the corner.

"Hey. I just wanted to come make sure that you were ok."

April sat up on the bed and hugged her knees to her chest, flinching a little as she moved. She tried to hide it, but Donnie had obviously noticed and was by her side in a flash, looking over her in a worried fashion.

"April, you are definitely NOT ok." He said, as he gently lifted her chin with a finger underneath it. He reached for the desk lamp with his other hand and tilted it to get a better look at her swelling cheek bone.

His soft touch and concern in his eyes was enough to bring April over the edge. She had managed to keep her emotions in check before now, but this moment reminded her that even with all of the crap going on her life, she still felt so lucky to have found a new home in this loving family of ninjas. She really did feel safe and protected in their care. Hell, if it hadn't been for Donatello and his random act of kindness that fateful night, she'd already be imprisoned by the Kraang, having who knows what done to her.

The emotions were overwhelming and she could feel tears bubbling to the surface.

Donnie, not knowing where her tears were coming from, quickly let go of her face. "I'm sorry, was I hurting you?" He asked panicked.

She could only manage to shake her head as tears started to spill over.

"Oh, April," He consoled, "Everything is going to be okay. We'll find your Dad and we'll defeat the Kraang…" Before he could finish his thought, April lunged forward and wrapping her arms around Donnie's neck, tears pouring down her face.

Donnie, still a little flustered by her touch froze for a brief moment, but quickly recovered, shifting to better embrace her and allowing her to rest her cheek against his plastron while she cried for all she was worth.

"I'm just so scared Donnie." She managed to choke out between sobs. "I thought Karai was going to take me. I thought…. I thought I'd never see my Dad again." She calmed a bit and took a deep breath, finishing in a whisper, "or you guys."

Donatello hugged her tightly while he listened, giving a little squeeze at her last statement.

"Me too." He confessed. "I promise that I will never leave you vulnerable like that again."

"It wasn't your fault Donnie." Her voice was muffled against his chest.

"That doesn't make me feel any better about it." He said, as he rubbed her upper arm. It was intended to be a comforting touch, but seemed to make her flinch again.

"April, you seem pretty banged up, let's go get you some ice and I'll do a quick exam. Ok?"

Somewhat to Donatello's disappointment, April actually listened to his advice and pushed back from his warm embrace, nodding in agreement as she wiped away some tears.

* * *

He lead her down the hall to this lab, and to a small cot in the corner, that April had never really noticed before. He instructed her to take a seat as he went over to the large refurbished hotel ice machine and filled up a bag.

"Here. Hold this on your cheek and let me take a look at your shoulder."

April gave a small thankful smile and set the bag next to her so she could shrug out of her T-shirt.

As soon as Donatello realized what she was doing, he spun around to look away, but not before April noticed his crimson cheeks.

"Relax." She teased. "I have a tank top on underneath."

Donnie could feel his embarrassment adding to the red in his cheeks. He turned back around and froze when he spotted the black and blue forms already evident on her pale skin. He instantly felt anger burn through his being. It was one thing when Karai was taunting Leonardo and leaving them to fight the foot clan, but attacking a defenseless woman, HIS friend, she had crossed a line.

"Karai better hope she never crosses paths with me." He muttered between clenched teeth, his voice a few octaves lower then usual. It was the first time April had ever heard the soft-spoken brother speak ill about anyone. His voice was laced with poison and she knew that he meant every word.

April figured it was best to just keep moving on and get it all out in the open at once.

"It really hurts right here when I take a deep breath or move too fast." She gestured to her side and pulled up the edge of her tank top. Beside her belly button was another large foot sized bruise marring her soft porcelain complexion.

Donnie felt like Jekyl and Hyde as he once again felt his emotions jump from one extreme to the next. Blinding rage one moment, being completely replaced with adoration and excitement of being allowed this close to April. He also felt a little guilty, for taking pleasure in this sad opportunity, but really, for a 6 foot talking turtle, this might be as close as he'll ever be to a girl.

"May I?" He managed to ask, and she nodded in response.

His three digits carefully pressed in on her tender skin, trying to judge the level of damage. April could tell that Donnie was fighting back a blush as he examined her, and she could feel her own face heat up at the thought, as he prodded her with surprisingly gentle hands.

"Well–" It came out as a squeak at first and he had to clear his throat before continuing. "Well, I think the cartilage around your ribs is bruised. I'll get another ice pack for that and a heavy dose of Ibuprofren. It should feel better in a couple days." He tried his best to sound professional.

"Thanks Donnie."

"Of course." He managed to say, quiet once again. He had been crouching down to examine her and his eyes were level with hers. She looked into his chocolate brown gaze and smiled. For a moment everything else seemed to disappear and they could just focus on each other.

"WHOAH!" Another voice broke through from the other side of the lab. "Maybe I should have knocked!" It was Michelangelo and he had stopped a few yards away from them, pretending to cover his eyes, and was making a grossed out face.

"Mikey!" Donnie shouted, standing up and casually standing in front of April, to block Mikey's view. "I was just attending to her injuries!" He protested.

"Relax bro, I was just giving you guys a hard time – wait, did Karai do that to you?" His attention instantly changed focus as he moved around Donnie to catch a glimpse of black and blue as April slipped her T-shirt back over her head.

"It's not as bad as it looks." She smiled up at Mikey, in a way that wasn't even convincing to him. "Ok- she got me pretty good, but I don't think we should tell the others. I don't want to cause any more friction between Raph and Leo." Her expression changed to more of a plea as she glanced between the two brothers.

Donnie let out a loud sigh. "She's right, you know. Those two fight about Karai enough as it is, we don't need to add any more fuel to the fire."

Mikey shared a look that clearly stated that he was not happy with the situation, but folded his arms and kept his mouth shut.

"So what now?" April asked, trying to change the subject. "I told my aunt I was staying with a friend tonight, but eventually she's going to realize that I haven't come back."

"Oh. That's actually why I came in here." Mikey kinda chuckled to himself, finding it amusing that he had already forgotten. "Leo just called, he says, 'It's all clear.'"

"What does that mean?" April stood and looked at Donnie who was clearly thinking over something that had to do with Mike's info.

"Well April— we're going to make you disappear."

* * *

**A/N:**

**So... yeah, I have been loving this new take on the turtles and couldn't resist writing a little something! After this week's episode with April getting beat up and then finding out that she'd be staying with the turtles, I got some great ideas. I hope to continue this, following April with her new life underground. Thanks for reading!**


	2. Chapter 2 - Disappearing Act

**Chapter 2 - Disappearing Act**

"Wait, what do you mean disappear?" April questioned the two brothers as Donnie walked across his lab and grabbed a bag. He seemed to be collecting things into it as he turned to answer her.

"Well, the foot are out looking for you and luckily, it seems that they haven't yet tracked down your aunt, at least for now. So we are taking this opportunity to go in and remove evidence that you were there." Donnie rambled off this information as normally as though he was planning a trip to the park.

"Wait, but what about Susan? What are we telling her?" April asked.

Donnie made a guilty kind of look to this question and glanced over at Mikey.

"You guys, what am I going to tell my aunt?" April crossed her arms in front of her to emphasize her annoyance that they hadn't answered.

"Well, she's going to think that you ran away." Donnie finally said. Mikey also had a guilty expression on his face as he looked over to gauge her reaction.

"So you're telling me, that I should just abandon her? Her brother just went missing, I'm the only family she has left!"

"This is for the best April. We'll leave a note, grab your stuff and be out of there before she even realizes that you left. I'm sorry, but that's how it has to be." He reached out and placed a soft hand on her good shoulder as he spoke.

"Fine, but I'm going with you." She argued. A look on her face saying that she would not be budging on this point.

"No, I think it's best that you stay here. You're injured and the Foot and Kraang are both looking for you–"

She cut him short. "Well it's a good thing that I'll be with my bodyguards."

"You have bodyguards?!" Michelangelo's eyes lit up.

Donnie sighed. "She means US, doofus."

"Oh right." Mikey grinned sheepishly.

"Leo's not going to be happy if we show up with you." Donnie turned back to April.

"He'll get over it." She stated.

"Ooooooh" Mikey raised his brow, clearly surprised that she had said such a thing.

Shaking his head in defeat, Donnie added, "Let me at least get you those pain killers before we go, I imagine you'll want them for the 'ride'."

* * *

A little while later, April found herself being carried across the rooftops of New York. It was a beautiful night and if she wasn't so freaked out about everything, and if her ribcage wasn't killing her, she might have been able to enjoy herself. But as it was, she was biting back tears from the jarring pain in her side and her mind was whirling over what they were about to do.

Donatello landed with a soft thud on the rooftop across the street from her building. He gently lowered the arm that was under her knees and allowed her to place her feet on the ground as she released the hold around his neck. Leo walked up beside them and glared at Donnie, obviously annoyed that he had brought her along.

"I wasn't going to let you guys do this without me." April spoke before Leo could, somewhat surprising the blue clad boy.

"It's not safe" He responded back to her.

"Mikey says you've been up here the last couple hours and haven't seen any activity right? We'll be quick. I'll grab the essentials and leave the note."

Leo made a half nod and then turned back to the others and started to plan their entrance.

"Donnie and I will go in alone." April interrupted before Leo could say much, "We'll be quicker and the rest of you can stand guard." Her eyes locked with Leonardo's, challenging him to disagree.

"Fine. But you guys get in and out without being seen." April nodded in agreement. "Are you guys ready?" He asked.

Donnie nodded next and then effortlessly scooped April back into his arms and leapt.

Raph walked up behind Leo and slapped him on the back of his shell, as they watched the two land across the way. "Way to take the lead there, boss."

* * *

Setting her down on the fire escape, Donnie insisted that he enter through the window first, just to be safe. But just as their intel has told them, the Foot didn't seem to have any knowledge of April's presence here. It probably helped that her aunt had never changed her name back after her first marriage. Whatever the reason, they were both grateful.

Moving around in the dark room, lit only by outside street lamps, April motioned over to her small desk in the corner. "Will you pack up my laptop and those hard drives? I'll grab clothes and such." Donnie nodded and headed toward the computer.

Fortunately, April had never really felt like making this temporary living space feel like her own. Something about officially moving in, made her feel like she had given up hope of returning home any time soon. She still had a small suitcase packed with most of her clothes, so she just needed to collect the few stray items around the room to hide the fact that she had ever been there.

She walked into her ensuite bathroom and grabbed her toothbrush, hairbrush, makeup bag and toiletries. She smiled a little to herself, thinking that had she allowed the teenage boys to pack for her, they never would have thought to grab things like her hairdryer or the box of feminine products. Did they even know what shampoo was?, she wondered.

She was grabbing her favorite razor out of the shower when she heard her bedroom door creak. As if he had been there the whole time, Donnie was instantly by her side, pushing the two of them back behind the bathroom door that sat ajar.

"April? Is that you?" A woman's voice called into the room.

It was just her aunt. Probably checking on things before heading to bed. April was immediately filled with guilt, and before she knew what she was doing she had called out to her.

"Hey Susan." She stepped out of the bathroom before Donnie could grab her arm, but not before he glared at her, silently voicing that she was messing up the plan.

"Oh April, you startled me! I thought you were gone for the night, but then I thought I heard something." The older woman smiled at her niece. April was glad the room was so dark, or she would surely have noticed the swelling on her face.

"I was just stopping in to grab a few things." April explained, somewhat truthfully.

"Ok. Well, I'm headed to bed. You be safe tonight, call me if you need anything." And as she left the room she stopped at the door and turned around to add, "I love you sweetheart."

April rushed over to her aunt and enveloped her in a hug, catching the older woman off guard. "I love you too."

"April honey, is everything ok?"

"No it's not." April stated, stepping out of the embrace and looking into her aunt's eyes. She knew she was going against the plan, and she knew that she was going to be in big trouble, but she also knew at that moment that this is what she needed to do. "I have to leave. It's not safe for you or for me to stay here."

"What are you saying?" Her aunt's demeanor quickly changed. "Don't even try to start with that young lady-"

But April cut her off before she could continue her rant. "Look, I know you don't believe my story about Dad being abducted, but I'm telling you there is more going on then you could possibly know. And I want you to trust that I am doing what is best!"

"April!" She sounded flabbergasted. "I want to believe you, but even I have a hard time wrapping my mind around robot aliens and mutant lizards!"

"Turtles, actually." April stated. Her bluntness stopped her aunt's tirade and she just stopped and looked at her for a moment, not really sure what to say next.

"Donnie," April called towards the bathroom. "Can you come out here please? Susan, there's someone I want you to meet. This is one of the turtles I told you about."

The room remained silent. Both women, stood and stared at each other for what felt like several minutes.

"Don, c'mon. She needs to see this, she needs to understand."

"Aw man." A male voice finally muttered from the bathroom, causing Susan to jump a little. "Leo's going to have my head!"

Donatello slowly stepped out of the bathroom, he moved smoothly and quietly and had his hands up in kind of a way to show he was unarmed. April knew that he was hoping she wasn't going to scream and was preparing himself to cover her mouth if need be.

Susan's jaw dropped open, but she didn't say a word. She just silently stared at the six foot turtle standing in her guest room.

"Susan, this is Donatello." April gestured between the two politely. "Donnie, this is my aunt."

"Hi m'am. It's nice to finally meet you." Donnie smiled in a shy way and then politely bowed in the Japanese custom.

"..my…God…" Was all she could manage to say. Donatello was grateful that she didn't scream.

"Susan, this is the man that saved me that night." Donnie smiled over at April, not missing the fact that she used the term 'man'. "He and his brothers risked their lives to go after me and Dad, he literally caught me as I fell from a helicopter!"

"I can't believe this." Susan managed to mutter.

"It's true m'am," Donnie spoke up, "and I promise that my family and I will continue to protect your niece."

"I don't doubt that." She said, smiling and then looking back to April. "So, everything you told me was true? There really are aliens and robots that took Kirby that night?"

"And we have reason to believe that they were actually after April all along." Donnie added. "We're going to hide her, so they can't come after her."

"Couldn't I do that?" She asked. "I could take you away from here, we could move to another state, start a new life somewhere." Her tone started to become a plea.

"These guys are going to help me find Dad." April assured her aunt. "There's something big going on here and I'm somehow tied to the middle of it. This really is the best plan."

Susan nodded reluctantly.

"If people come looking, we need you to tell them that I ran away. Can you do that?" April asked.

"I'll do whatever you need me to do, sweetheart. I just want you to be safe." She paused. "I'm not sure how I feel about this whole situation, but you obviously have a better idea of what's going on then I do, and I do trust you. If you think you'll be safest with them, then go."

April lunged forward and hugged her aunt again. "Thank you Susan, for trusting me! I'm going to get Dad back." April stepped back and gestured to Donnie, "This guy here, is a genius! He'll come up with a safe way for me to contact you and let you know that I'm ok."

Donnie looked up, not really expecting to be part of this conversation anymore, a bit of pride swelling in him over being called a genius. "I bet I can reroute an email address to bounce off a few signals–" He stopped when he saw April giving him a look. "I'll plan the details later," He wrapped up. "But I will find a way for April to stay in contact with you."

"Thank you… Donatello, was it?" Susan spoke directly to Donnie and held out a hand to shake his. "Like the sculptor?"

Donnie nodded and took her small hand in his to shake. "Our dad has a thing for renaissance art."

"You promise me that you'll keep my April safe?" She stared into his large eyes, a mother bear kind of look about her.

Donatello's tone was serious and he placed his other hand on his plastron, right over where his heart would be. "I swear on my life."

"Good. Now tell me what I can do to help."

* * *

From the rooftops across the street, the three remaining brothers stood watch. Leonardo could see Donatello through the window, shaking hands with April's aunt. He rubbed a hand over his face in frustration. So much for staying out of sight. It seemed when it came to April, Donatello's judgement became blurred at best.

He could barely make out Raphael chuckling to himself from his own perch the next roof over. "I'm really starting to like this girl!" He hollered.

Leo knew that inviting April into their lair and having her on their team would change things, but he had no idea what he was in store for.

* * *

**A/N:**

**So? What did you guys think? I know, not the most exciting chapter, but I really felt like that needed to be wrapped up before moving onto 'April living in the lair'! Plus I really liked the idea of her introducing Donnie to her aunt. :D**

**I promise more fun in the next chapter! And while Donnie is my fave, I'll try to make sure I keep all the turtles included.**

**I would certainly love to read your reviews and hear what you all think. Big thanks to all those that left one for the first chapter! I truly appreciate each one and it inspires me to write more! :)**


	3. Chapter 3 - Returning Home

**Chapter 3 - Returning home**

The trip back was spent mostly in silence. Donnie was again carrying April in his arms and she could tell that he too was worried that Leo hadn't said a word since they left her Aunt's place. They knew there was going to be hell to pay, but it had to wait. For now, they ran along rooftops, the other three turtles carrying her bags over their shoulders. Each brother on high-alert, focusing on making it back safe.

They descended to the streets from a lower roof at the end of an alley, slipping open a manhole cover that was set there. Silently they began passing the bags from one to the next, through the small opening in the asphalt. Never once, did they stop to discuss their actions. Sometimes April was taken aback by their teamwork and how well the brothers seemed to know what the others were thinking.

Before even realizing it was her turn, Mikey grabbed April by the hand of her good arm and effortlessly lowered her down to Donnie's waiting arms. He was careful not to put too much pressure on her sore ribs as he set her down beside him. Mikey hopped down next, followed by Leonardo who slid the manhole cover back into place.

It seemed, that now they had entered the sewer, they had crossed the line into 'safer territory' and they were now free to talk again.

"What the hell were you two thinking?!" Leonardo turned and shouted at the pair. Donatello stepped forward, subconsciously putting himself in front of April, as though shielding her from his brother's wrath.

"Leo, I–" Donatello started, but was stopped by a hand on his shoulder from the petite redhead pushing out from behind him.

"No. It was all me, don't be mad at Donnie. I just…" She waved her hands around in the air looking for the right words, but being unable to find them. "… I just, couldn't do it."

Leonardo silently glared at her in a frightening way, not convinced by her lame excuse.

"I'm sorry Leo, it was not my intention to go against your plan." She added.

"And really, I think it turned out for the best." Donnie chimed in, trying to help. "Susan was surprisingly helpful and very understanding. She wanted to help however she could."

"Oh, Susan was helpful then?" Leonardo shot back with sarcasm on his tongue. "You should not be on a first name basis with her, Donnie! What part of 'don't be seen' was I unclear on?!"

"I'm sorry, Leo, I…" Donnie stammered, before adding, "but at least now we know that she's not going to call the police, or file a missing persons report, we certainly don't need anyone else out looking for April. She's going to report to her school and stuff that she moved back to Phoenix."

"It's the last place Dad and I lived before we moved here." April added in, helping to explain their new cover.

Leonardo stood back and took a deep breath as he processed all of the information. It did sound like a good deal, as long as they could trust her. He ran a hand over his smooth head and kind of rolled his eyes to the heavens. April was sure that if she could read minds, he'd be thinking something along the lines of, 'what have I gotten myself into?'.

"And…" April remembered another point, "She gave me some cash and one of her credit cards to use, and since it's still here in town it shouldn't be suspicious as long as we are careful with it."

Donnie stood next to her nodding in agreement.

Everyone stood there silent for a moment, Raph and Mikey waiting from the sidelines to see if the fight was over. And when it seemed like Leo was done, Mikey chimed in to lighten the mood, "Does that mean you are going to treat your 'moving buddies' here to some pizza?"

"I'd love to!" April smiled at the youngest brother, thankful for his change of topic.

"That's fine." Leo answered as the group looked to him for permission.

"Boo-yah!" Mikey pumped a fist in the air.

"C'mon then, there's a pizza parlor at the end of this corridor," Raph gestured for the group to follow him. "And hurry up already, I'm starving!"

Spirits lifted, the gang followed. April, now able to walk on her own, since they were done leaping over rooftops, followed closely behind with Leonardo bringing up the rear.

"April, a word?" He called to her, getting her to hang back a moment so they could talk in semi-private.

"Sure." She answered apprehensively.

"I understand why you did what you did, but I need you to understand something too." His voice was low and serious, the leader was taking charge.

"Our father has worked hard for over 15 years to keep us hidden and protected from the outside world. Our secrecy is essential to our safety. The fewer people that know about us, the better.

I need to know that you can keep our secret – that you won't tell anyone else about us.

Just as you were watching out for your family just now, I'm watching out for mine.  
Are we clear?"

"Of course. I promise that I will never put any of you in danger." She said softly, feeling a lump settle in her stomach, just knowing that she made him feel the need to ask.

"Good." He said, instantly sounding much brighter and wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "Because, it seems you are a part of that family now too."

"Thanks Leo." She smiled.

And they quickened their pace to catch up with the others.

* * *

They soon returned to the lair with the pizzas in hand. The boys plopped her bags down just inside the turnstiles and excitedly headed for the kitchen. Donatello hung back when he noticed that April wasn't following them.

"Hey, aren't you hungry?" He asked.

"Nah, I think I'm just going to call it a night." Her usual cheerful tone was replaced with a tired and defeated one. "Did you need anything out of your room before I hit the hay?"

She had reached down to grab the larger suitcase, and her sore ribs ached in protest.

"Here, let me help." Donnie effortlessly grabbed the large suitcase as well as the smaller duffle bag that he had packed her computer into and lead the way to his room. "I need to grab a couple things anyways."

"Sorry it's such a mess in here." He exclaimed as they both dumped the luggage along the wall in his small bedroom and he started nervously compiling some of the messy stacks.

"It's fine Donnie, I just want to sleep, but if there's somewhere else you would rather I go…?"

"No!" He half shouted before catching himself. "I mean, no. Of course you are welcome here. It's not uncommon for me to crash in the lab anyways, so it's really no big deal. I just feel bad I didn't get the chance to clean up a little."

"Seriously, it's fine." April yawned as she plopped down on his bed and kicked off her boots.

"Well, let me just grab my laptop and a couple things and I'll get out of your way." He started collecting up items around the room. He tried his best not to look at the beautiful redhead that was sitting on HIS bed, as he knew it would make him blush furiously.

"Can I get you anymore ice or anything?" He asked from the doorway, his arms full.

"No thanks, I'm good." She gave a weak smile.

"Ok, well goodnight."

"Goodnight."

Donnie softly closed the door on his way out, leaving April alone in the darkened room. She knew she should change out of her clothes and take out her contacts, but even those small tasks felt so daunting.

Laying down, she curled up on her side as best as she could, her ribs and shoulder screamed out in protest. But even that was not enough to make her move. She felt drained. Defeated. Like she had given up all hope along with her retreat.

Despite the brave front she had put on for her aunt, for the first time since meeting the turtles, she had started to doubt whether or not everything would ever be 'ok' again.

A few silent tears ran down her cheeks as she drifted off to sleep.

* * *

**A/N: Ok, so this ended up a little short, but it was a good place to cut it. Sorry it has taken 3 chapters just to get her INTO the lair. Consider it, setting up the story. Things will pick up pace after this. I already have a couple scenes written out, so now it's a matter of figuring out how they all intertwine with one another. **

**I hope you all feel like I'm doing an OK job with April. I want her to be tough, but also realistic. She's still a young woman who lost her family and has bad people after her, that's got to be emotional, no matter how tough you try to be. Hopefully she's feeling better after getting some sleep. ;)**

**Thanks again for reading and thanks to everyone that leave reviews. It makes me smile every single time I get a new one! :D**


	4. Chapter 4 - And So it Begins

**Chapter 4 - And So it Begins**

After what felt like only a few hours later, April was awakened by the alarm on her phone. She rolled over, groping around for the offending object through blurry, sticky eyes.

She managed to switch it off, groaning from the many angry bruises that still ached. The pain woke her just enough to realize that she was not in a familiar place. Confused, she sat up and did a quick survey of her surroundings.

Decaying brick walls decorated with pages torn from science magazines surrounded her. She took in the musty and ragged blankets she was wrapped in, they had a distinctive smell that reminded her of a car mechanic's shop and a muskiness that was uniquely Donatello. She pulled the blankets tighter around her, feeling comforted by them.

For a brief moment when her alarm had gone off she had forgotten everything. Forgot about aliens and mutants and even her missing father. For a split second she had been a normal teenager, protesting the call of the alarm to get ready for school. That moment, however brief, had been nice.

"Well I guess I don't need my alarm anymore." She muttered to herself, briefly wondering what her classmates would think of her disappearance in class.

The clock on her phone blinked an obnoxiously early time, but she knew that at this point, she wasn't going to get back to sleep.

Reluctantly, she climbed out of the turtle's bed and shivered in the chilly morning air, quickly realizing why there was so many blankets. Thankful for the many scattered rugs on the cold cement floor, she trudged over to her suitcase and dug out some fresh contacts to switch into.

Unfortunately, the pain in her side actually seemed a bit worse and she felt stiff all over. April figured a nice hot shower would be good for her muscles. She dug around some more in her suitcase and pulled out a towel and a small bag of toiletries.

Moving quietly through the dark, silent lair, she felt slightly creeped out by the stillness. She was obviously the only one awake at this ungodly hour. She had never visited this early in the morning, but assumed that with her roommate's nocturnal habits, they would probably be asleep for awhile still.

Cautiously April stepped into the bathroom, groping the walls for a lightswitch. Somehow, she had managed to have never used the lair's facilities before. Recalling some horrific New York bathrooms she had seen in her day, she was a little worried at what she would find.

Her hand grazed the switch and flicked on the overhead lights, illuminating the room in a warm glow. She was pleasantly surprised at what lay before her. She had forgotten that this area the boys called home, was actually an old subway station, long since abandoned before it was finished. It seemed as though this room actually was intended to be a rather large public restroom. With elegant woodwork around the frames and door jambs, and a beautiful mosaic tile floor, (by far the most completed area in the entire building), it was actually rather beautiful.

Two stalls stood to one side and the oversized handicap stall at the end had been transformed into a make-shift bathing area. Set up inside it was an old-fashioned footed bathtub with a standing shower head. A couple of mismatched shower curtains were laced all the way around it, hanging from a handmade frame of what looked to be bicycle chain.

The whole room was surprisingly clean looking, especially for having been shared by 5 men. April mused to herself that Splinter, the tidiest rat she'd ever seen, probably had a lot to do with it.

She quickly used the toilet and then brushed her teeth in one of the three copper sinks before locking herself in the last stall and stripping down. She prayed that there would be hot water and was not disappointed.

Standing under the hot stream, the water washing over her face felt like heaven. It was rejuvenating and April mentally imagined all of the worries from the day before, rinsing away down the drain.

Turning off the tap, April wrapped herself up in one of the purple towels she had thankfully brought along from her aunt's house. While collecting up her clothes, the bathroom door opened. Soft footsteps padded in and she could hear water running at one of the sinks. For a moment, she contemplated hiding in the stall until they left, but that felt silly. She was living here now and would cross paths with the boys in the bathroom eventually.

She stepped out and walked towards the sinks, where one of the turtles was scrubbing his hands. He wasn't wearing a mask, but she could tell from his coloring and build that it was Donatello.

"Morning." She tried her best to sound nonchalant.

"AUGH!" Donnie leapt back a little – completely surprised by her presence.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to spook you." She apologized.

"No, it's fine. I didn't think anyone else was awake" He took in her wet hair, hanging down in dripping, wavy red strands, he had never seen her hair out of its elastic. She had obviously just showered, and with the amount of humidity in the room he was embarrassed that he hadn't even noticed. "Some ninja I am?" He joked. A small yawn snuck its way out and he was suddenly hit with how exhausted he was. "I guess I'm a little out of it."

"Have you gone to bed yet?" She asked.

"Not technically, but I nodded off at my desk for an hour or so, does that count?"

April looked up into Don's big brown eyes, free from their usual hiding place behind his mask. Taking in his appearance, she came to the conclusion that he had been up building something, as he seemed to be scrubbing grease off his hands and had a couple dark smears on his cheek.

Along with his mask, she noticed that he was also without his usual protective pads and wraps. In fact, he wasn't even wearing his belt, he was completely, well, naked. She suddenly felt awkward and averted her eyes to the floor.

In his sleep-deprived state, it took him a moment to notice the way she was looking at him, he wasn't sure at first, what was so different. Then he realized he had wandered in here thinking he would get cleaned up before bed and had taken off his mask. He hadn't intended for her to see him without it.

He was painfully reminded how different his face was from the human race every time he looked in the mirror, with his wide green beak and not a single hair on his head, including eyebrows. But it was even more obvious when he was without his mask, which he felt, helped define his more humanoid features. Wishing to hide inside his shell, which was yet another non-human reminder he'd rather not display in front of her, he self-consciously turned away, to hide himself from her line of sight.

He faced the sink and pretended to fiddle with the tap. "Sorry, I know I look pretty weird without my mask on."

"Wha? Oh – no. I wasn't thinking that at all." She quickly spouted off, feeling terrible to have made him think so, if only for that second.

He turned towards her again, his brow raised and voice skeptical. "You don't think I'm weird looking?"

"No, I don't." Her voice was soft and genuine. She gently laid a hand on his shoulder, to keep his attention. "I mean sure, you and your brothers have your own undeniable uniqueness about you, but I've never thought you were weird looking." She looked right into his eyes and smiled, wanting to make sure that he knew she was serious.

She truly meant what she had said. Sure the first time she laid eyes on him, she may have screamed a bit. But in her defense, she was in the midst of being kidnapped. And it wasn't so much that she had found him weird or frightening, just, you really don't expect a six foot turtle to walk over and talk to you.

Now that she had spent some time with the family, had seen them interact with each other and tease and play, she really saw them as just teenage boys. Sure, there was no missing the fact that they were green and had shells, but at their core they were teenagers, awkward in their own skin, just like she was.

She felt like she needed to prove her point, to make sure he knew that she was serious and not just scrambling to backtrack. Her mind replayed one of the many times he had complimented her (whether or not he had intended for her to hear it) and she realized she should return the favor. "You have adorable big brown eyes. Somehow they seem even bigger when they aren't hidden behind your mask."

Donnie smiled again and it warmed her heart.

"You don't have to say that." He looked a little embarrassed.

"Yeah I do." She smiled back up at him. "I'm sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable, I was just realizing that I had never seen you without all of your gear on... I felt like I had walked in on you naked or something."

Donnie chuckled a little. "Well, you know, technically I'm always naked." He shrugged at himself, emphasizing the point. "In fact – you're the one that's naked."

They both looked down at the thick terry cloth wrapped at her bust line. It was as if neither of them had actually noticed her state of undress before that very moment.

Donnie's gaze whipped back up away from her bare shoulders and his cheeks burned furiously. April also felt herself flush and haphazardly stepped back from him and grabbed her clothes she had set on the counter.

"Yeah, I should probably go get ready." She mumbled, failing to act calm and collected.

"I should probably grab a few hours of sleep." Donnie retorted, looking anywhere but at her.

April rushed out of the bathroom and back to the bedroom feeling utterly embarrassed. One more thing to add to her list of 'why it's weird living in an underground lair with a bunch of mutant teenage boys'.

* * *

April spent most of the early morning in her room doing research on her laptop, thankful that Donnie had already encrypted it for her during one of the many times he helped her with homework. She thought she would be excited about the prospects of no longer going to school and worrying about homework, but after her last few days, the normalcy of it sounded appealing. Not being able to focus, she had even managed a short nap, but by 9:30 she found herself growing hungry and figured the house should be up by now.

Wandering into the kitchen area, she found Mikey sitting at the cement slab, which served as their make-shift table. He appeared to be eating some kind of scrambled egg with pepperoni and sardines in it. Hiding a small shudder, she wished him a 'good morning' and opened the fridge in search of something that a 100% human would want to eat. Scanning the many questionable items on the shelves, she settled for some leftover olive and mushroom pizza. Thankful that she had requested the 'boring' toppings, as Mikey had referred to them. She mumbled to herself about needing to do some grocery shopping and joined the youngest turtle at the table.

"Did you sleep ok?" Mikey asked between mouthfuls.

"Yeah, I forgot to turn off my alarm though, so I've been up for awhile."

"Ugh, if I had it my way, I'd sleep till noon, but I'd get my butt handed to me by Sensei if I missed the early training session."

"Hey Mike–" A gruff voice called into the room, followed by its owner in red. "Oh hey April, You guys about ready?"

"Ready for what?" April asked between the two brothers.

"Training. In the dojo.10 minutes."

"I'm in!" April was suddenly charged with excitement. This was something tangible that she could actually do to help prepare herself for the fight against Shredder and the Kraang. She wasn't about to let herself be caught unprepared again by Karai or any other bad guy.

"Are you sure that you should–?" Michelangelo started to ask before being smacked in the arm as April glared at him, her eyes silently motioning towards Raphael.

Not sure how to back pedel, Mikey opted to instead shove his last bite of breakfast in his mouth. "We'll be right there!" Was quickly mumbled around eggs.

Raph rolled his eyes at whatever they were not telling him and waved his hand in dismissal as he left the room.

* * *

April's feeling of excitement didn't last long and was disappointed to find herself yet again on the sidelines practicing her techniques alone, while the boys sparred in the center of the room.

Each step and twist pulled and burned in her sore muscles, but she didn't care. She knew that she needed to get better to prevent it from happening again.

Around the fiftieth or so time she had successfully completed the newest kata, she heard Splinter call out to the room to switch.

"Hei Sensei!" Was chorused and the boys switched partners. Leo against Donnie and Raphael against Michelangelo. At the signal, the boys began against their new opponents. Today's lesson was focused on hand to hand combat and the boys practiced the familiar moves with ease. Raphael was always displeased when he had to set his sais aside and was clearly not putting forth his best effort.

"Raphael!" Splinter interjected. "Your form is sloppy, straighten your back!"

The red clad turtle gave an audible sigh, much to his sensei's distaste.

"Yame!" Splinter called out, causing the group to end their round. "Raphael - switch with April!" He gestured for the turtle to move to the sidelines.

April's face lit up, this is what she had been hoping for. She had had many opportunities to practice alongside the turtles, but this would be her first time sparing with one as a partner. She quickly moved into the middle of the room, taking her place in front of Michelangelo.

Donatello, however was much less thrilled with this decision and gave his younger brother a knowing glare. Mikey, didn't need to be told that Donnie was warning him that he better take it easy on her.

Once everyone had taken their new positions, Splinter once again called out to the room to begin practice. "Hajime!"

April and Mikey both bowed to one another and took their stances.

The young turtle slowly began to circle the girl, very aware of the judgmental eyes of his older brother boring a hole in the back of his head. He took two almost playful punches towards April that she easily blocked, giving him a look as if to ask what he was doing. She returned the attack with beautiful precision, each time her hands landing exactly where they should. Mikey easily blocked and dodged each familiar move as he slowly backed away. One hand swiped past his head and as he ducked, he spun around by instinct and swept his leg out, catching her by surprise. The kick more offset her footing and she tripped a little, catching herself before even hitting the ground.

"Hey!" Donatello yelled out at Mikey just as Leo swung at him. Not paying attention, the full brunt of Leo's fist caught him across the chin and Donnie fell back to the ground.

"Yame!" Splinter ordered and the whole room paused.

Donnie sat on the mat holding his jaw, Leo looking down over him. "What was that?" The older one asked.

Mikey tried to extend a hand to help April to her feet, but she had already righted herself. "What was that?" She asked of him, dusting off her knee, completely oblivious to the other sparring team. "You weren't even trying!"

"i just…I was… I didn't want…" Mikey blubbered and was thankful when Splinter gestured for them to gather in.

The five students all lined up and knelt down in front of their sensei.

"You all seem very preoccupied." Splinter began. "Perhaps this is a good time to end session for today. I expect for you all to arrive tomorrow with more focus."

"Hei Sensei!" They all replied in unison.

The group filed their way out of the dojo and wandered into the main room. Leo headed straight to the television switching to a rerun of Space Heroes.

"Thank goodness for that show's time slot, or you know we'd be hearing a second round of criticism from Mr. Leader over there." Raphael pointed with his thumb, over his shoulder toward Leo.

Mikey walked up, his arms full of water bottles he had grabbed from the kitchen. Donnie took one and passed it to April, before grabbing one for himself. Mikey handed the last one to Raph, as he used his best mock-leader voice, puffed up his chest and held up one finger to help emphasize his point. "Even though Master Splinter just told us moments, ago, I'm going to repeat everything you did wrong. Because I'm the leader and that makes me sound more in charge!"

April and Raph chuckled at his over-the-top imitation.

"Oh hey, are you guys still free to help me out now?" Donnie asked his brothers, his mind obviously elsewhere.

"What are you guys doing?" April asked, wondering if maybe she could help.

"Going on a scavenge run!" Mikey replied rather excitedly.

She must have looked confused because Donnie felt the need to elaborate. "We're going to the dump to scrounge around for usable parts. That's where we get most of our stuff around here. It's amazing how many perfectly good things get tossed out when they could be easily fixed."

"Easy for you, maybe." Raph remarked.

Donnie rolled his eyes at the comment and continued. "Anyways, they are closed on Sundays, and it's easier to look in the daylight." He paused before adding, "I'm not so sure it's wise to take you above ground, after yesterday…"

He needn't go into any more detail, April knew exactly what he was trying to say. He was afraid for her. It was crazy to think that it had been just the day before when she had been attacked by Karai.

As it was, April was anxious about leaving the confines of the lair just yet, and really the idea of sifting through trash sounded kind of terrible, so she politely nodded and waved goodbye to the trio as they took off.

* * *

The rest of the afternoon, April found herself finding various ways to keep herself preoccupied. Not completely aware that she was never left alone for very long.

She half-heartedly watched a couple episodes with Leo before dozing off on the couch. The lack of sleep finally catching up with her.

When she awoke, her companion had been replaced with Master Splinter meditating silently on a ledge off to the side and Mikey humming to himself as he moved around the kitchen making lunch, apparently back from scavenging.

April made sure to help so she could keep an eye on whatever wound up on her plate. Which ended up being some Ramen noodles and an 8 month past it's expiration date granola bar. The chocolate had that waxy white look about it, but it still tasted delicious.

At one point she looked for Donnie in his lab and then his room, but had been unable to find him. So again she found herself sitting in the purple turtle's room trying to do some research into TCRI or sightings of the Kraang or any other news item she could get her hands on. Still not finding much, she found herself reading one of the many science books that littered the young genius' room.

There was a loud rap at the door and Mikey popped his head in as soon as she called out to enter. "Wow. You must really be bored if you are reading that stuff."

Mikey suggested that they play some video games, but after awhile he excused himself and disappeared, only to be replaced by Leo who slid right into his spot and picked up the controller.

"When did you get here?" April asked surprised, as she finished a level and turned to swap Player 1 with the turtle beside her.

"Oh, Mikey said he had to run out." Leo answered simply, taking the remote and starting up the next level.

They played in companionable silence, uttering a 'nice move' or 'get it!' when needed. April had hardly noticed the time passing, before Mikey had returned and called them into the kitchen.

The two saved their game and wandered towards the kitchen area. April rounded the corner and was suddenly struck with a sight. Raphael, Donatello, Michelangelo and even master Splinter were seated around the large cement table, which had a haphazard table cloth across it and mismatched place settings for everyone. A small candle flickered in the very center of everything. Leonardo quickly moved around her and grabbed a seat as the whole group yelled out, "surprise!"

"You guys!" April tried to find words to comment on the thoughtful gesture, but found her throat was constricted and her eyes were brimming with tears.

"We wanted to officially welcome you into our home!" Mikey said, hopping up from his stool and grabbing boxes of takeout. "I picked up food from Mirakami San; pizza gyoza of course, but also some of your favorite dishes that he recommended."

Mikey used a soft hand on her back to guide her to her place at the table, setting down the stack of food with the other hand.

"I don't know what to say." April finally choked out. Quickly swiping away a single tear that had escaped down her cheek.

"After everything that happened, we wanted you to know how very happy we are to have you here with our family." Leonardo started. And then Splinter took over.

"And while it may not be for the best circumstances, we hope you are still able to enjoy your stay."

Donnie and Raph both nodded in silent agreement from the other end of the table.

"This means so much you guys, thank you." The redhead could think of nothing else more fitting to say.

"Believe it or not, this was all Mikey's idea!" Raph added, as he started opening containers and passing them around the table.

April looked over at the young turtle, eyebrows raised in an impressed look.

The freckled turtle had a proud grin on his face.

"Thanks Mikey." April smiled.

The new family sat, crowded around their makeshift table and thoroughly enjoyed the feast that Michelangelo had brought. They chatted and laughed. And even though they all knew that terrible things had happened to bring April to this point in her life, they still felt that she belonged here as part of their strange little family.

Looking around at the happy faces of her friends, April felt more at home then she had anywhere in years. She still missed her father, but at least she knew that for now, she could be happy.

**End Chapter 4**

**A/N - So, this chapter took me forever! I couldn't find a nice way to go through all the random moments in her day without it feeling so choppy. Hopefully it wasn't too bad! And of course I couldn't leave poor April feeling down for very long. **

**So did you like the bathroom scene? I know it's been done before, but I couldn't help myself. I seem to really have a thing for leading male characters that have self-doubt about their appearance, and their ability to find anyone to love them for who they are. And yes, Beauty and the Beast is one of my favorite loves stories. ;)**

**Again, many thanks to all of the reviews and critiques sent my way! As I said, they make my day. :D**


	5. Chapter 5 - Behind Closed Doors

**Chapter 5 - Behind Closed Doors**

"Umpfh!" April let out a groan as her back hit the hard ground, but wasted no time rolling to the side before launching herself back up onto her feet. She spun the wooden practice tonfa around in her grip and charged.

She had to laugh to herself for the events that had brought her to this situation, but here she was, middle of the night, in some god forsaken corner of the sewers, willingly sparring with one of the scariest ninjas she knew. And oddly enough, it had been her idea. She reminisced at how it had happened.

**  
It had been the night the clan of turtles had officially welcomed her into their home. It had been a lovely gesture and April still smiled at the image of the whole group crowded around the small table enjoying their first meal together as a family. After the meal, the boys had gone out on patrol, or so she thought, and was surprised to find the turtle in red hanging out in the living room.

"Why aren't you out with the others?" She had asked him, as she joined him on the couch.

"Meh, they're just doing surveillance tonight, checking in on your aunt, setting up a few safety precautions and all that. Not really my style." He shrugged.

She had known then, that something fishy was up and had a sneaking suspicion that Raphael was hiding something and proceeded to casually see if she could get it out of him.

"You know, if I were doing surveillance, I'd want you there to watch my back." She prodded.

"I know, right?!" Raph piped up. "That's what I told 'em, but they wouldn't listen!"

"I knew you weren't staying behind by choice!" April pointed a finger, catching him in his lie. "What, did you draw the short straw and get stuck on babysitting duty?!"

"Nah - c'mon, it's not like that." Raph tried to argue, not even bothering to try to deny it. The look on the petite redhead's face told him that she wasn't about to listen to anything less then the truth. "We just want to make sure you're safe."

"You really think Karai could find me down here?" Her voice was incredulous.

"Well, no. But Donnie wasn't about to take any chances until he had all the new security up and running and you have to admit that you're a trouble magnet who doesn't have the best track record when it comes to staying put."

"Hey!" April acted offended, but also could recall several times that she had willingly walked into a dangerous situation, even at the pleas of her friends.

Raph lifted a brow, daring her to argue his point.

"ARGH!" She let out a frustrated sound and stood in a huff so that she could pace off her anger while she ranted. "I get that Donnie is trying to keep me safe, but he can't always be there; just look at what happened with Karai! Hiding me away down here is not a solution!" She calmed down and thought for a moment before adding, "I need to be better prepared for next time. I need to learn to fight–REAL fighting, not just the motions!"

Raph let out a type of chuckle that was also a sound of understanding. "Yeah, I remember having this same conversation with Splinter, he definitely didn't go for it."

"Wait - that's it! You should train me!" She countered.

"Say what now?" He was not sure he had heard her correctly.

"You could train me! Show me how to survive a fight! Real, hands on fighting."

"I dunno April, Sensei would never go for that. He's all about going through the motions and learning all the proper techniques and katas beforehand."

"Well that's why I need you to teach me. I'll still train with master Splinter too, but in the meantime, you can give me the expedited lessons."

Raph looked at her, standing there with her hands on her hips and a determined glint in her blue eyes. What she was saying held some truth. Starting at the beginning and going through all the training had it's advantages, but she was being thrown into a full on war, and didn't have the luxury of time.

"C'mon Raph, you're the best fighter of the group. And I know you won't just take it easy on me."

He gave her a wry smile, well aware that she was playing at his ego. "Well, now you're just sweet talking me."

"Please." She added softly, with all seriousness. "I need to do SOMETHING to help stop the Kraang…. to help find my Dad."

"Fine." He huffed. "But it will have to be our little secret for now. Can you handle that?"

April smiled and made a pantomimed action of locking her lips with an invisible key.

April's spirits had been lifted over the next couple of days. Continuing her daily routine of practicing her forms with Master Splinter, and keeping herself occupied while hiding out in the lair. And also sneaking in private training sessions with Raph whenever they could. Often times, it would be either early in the mornings, before most of the household was awake, or late in the evenings after patrol, when the other brothers had called it a night. Which was the case for this particular instance.

And that's how April found herself in a darkly lit corner of the sewers that Raphael had found for them to train in, without being bothered by the others. It was only a few minutes walk from the entrance of the lair, just a small area that had been cleared of debris, save for a few cardboard boxes laid out to help soften the cement floor as best it could. So far she had been pleased with the young man for keeping his promise of not taking it easy on her. And it seemed, he really was the best fighter of the group when he wasn't bound to certain moves and Splinter's rules. Had she not been impressed by his skills before, she certainly was now.

She ached all over, not just from her old wounds, which had finally begun to heal, but also from being tossed around by her new teacher in red. She could feel the rewarding burn of exhaustion and use in every muscle in her body. Between practice with Splinter and the extra sessions with Raph, she had never worked out so much in all of her life. When she finally found time to sleep, she passed out as soon as her head hit the pillow. The switch to the boy's more nocturnal habits wasn't helping her any either.

Raphael had been reluctant at first, not really sure if April realized what she was asking, but had so far rather enjoyed their sessions. She had spunk and a determination that he sometimes saw in himself. Nothing about her was the stereotypical; shopaholic, afraid to break a nail, high-maintenence type woman that he had always seen portrayed on television. No, there was definitely something different about her and for the first time, he had begun to understand what Donnie saw in her, other then a pretty face.

A pretty face that currently was screwed up in concentration staring at him from across the dark room. Circling him as a predator would its prey. He smirked, impressed at how much she had learned already.

"So Red, you gonna do this or what?" He taunted her, crouching down, preparing to pounce.

She continued to move slowly, working her way around to his other side, feeling the blood pulsing through her veins with each deep breath. When suddenly, she bolted at him, raising her tonfas and letting out a guttural screamed as she charged. She swung the batons as she moved in on him and Raph blocked them with ease, ducking under one larger arch and rolling off to the other side of the room. He jumped up behind her and kicked her in the back of the knee before she could reorientate herself.

Losing balance she stumbled to the side, but managed to quickly duck her head as one of his fists flew just over her. She swung backwards, barely catching the edge of his shell, but enough to cause him to leap back and take a new stance. She charged again, hoping to catch him off guard, but he easily grabbed her arms and used her forward momentum to toss her, causing her to land hard on the floor. She rolled into it, like he had taught her, as best as she could, but still felt the breath knocked from her chest.

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" A new voice hollered into the room and both April and Raph froze with wide eyes, like a small child being caught sneaking a treat.

The voice belonged to Donatello, who had apparently been watching the last couple minutes of sparring before feeling the need to break it off. He rushed to April's side, as she slowly lifted herself up off the ground, taking in a deep breath to refill her lungs.

"April! Are you ok?"

"Stay out of this Donnie!" She pushed herself up and away from him, angry at his interference.

"But he's being too rough! You're just a beginner!"

"She's a tough girl Donnie, give her some credit!" Raph hollered back, only to receive a look of daggers from his brother.

"The foot aren't going to take it easy on me!" April shot back at Donnie, her frustration boiling over. "You dote on me like… like I'm this helpless little girl – it's time for some tough love and I found the turtle willing to dish it out!"

Donatello had never heard April speak in such a tone to anyone, especially not himself. He wasn't quite sure how to react. He glanced over at his brother who was smiling smugly, and then back to April who stood with her arms crossed defensively across her chest.

He opened his mouth to try and apologize, to explain his rationale that he was only looking out for her safety. But found it obvious, that it was not what she was wanting to hear. It was the first time he had found himself at a loss for words. So he simply turned and walked out of the room.

April watched him retreat. Standing there, full of adrenaline and still breathing heavily, she didn't want to think about it any more. She turned back to Raph, narrowing her gaze. "We going to finish this?"

"Hell yeah!"

Raph crouched back and then dashed towards the girl, swinging his baton at her head. She swiftly ducked and spun, in an impressively elegant move, before striking back. The wooden weapons clacking loudly against one another as they moved across the room.

April lashed upward, and Raph caught one of her wrists between his batons and kicked at her middle, knocking her backwards. Her weapons flew from her hands as she hit the ground. Before she had a chance to roll, Raph landed on her, straddling her hips, grabbing her arms and pinning them above her head.  
"Tag." He smiled smugly down at her. "You're letting your anger cloud your focus. Trust me, I know all about that."

She squirmed beneath him attempting to wriggle free of his grasp. The movement caused her black T-shirt to ride up and Raph caught a glimpse of the dark bruises still marring her flesh.

"Aw shit!" He jumped up off of her as if he'd been burned. "Did I do that?!"

April quickly sat up and pulled her shirt back down into place. "No, you didn't."

Not really hearing her, he continued to swear under his breath. "Damnit! Donnie was right, I take things too far, I don't know when to stop. You're just a beginner. What the fuck was I thinking?!"

"Raphael!" April stood and grabbed his wrist and turned him towards her to get his attention. She saw in his eyes a vulnerability she had never seen before. He was already beating himself up inside. "Raph, it's an old bruise. It's not your fault."

His eyes narrowed. "Then where's it from?"

She stared back, but didn't answer. She didn't need to, he put it together almost instantly.

"That bitch! ARGH - I told Leo that girl was trouble! When I get my hands on her–!"

"Yeah, yeah. Join the club." April cut him off smiling, trying to calm him down.

He stopped his rant and took a few steps, willing his body to calm with him. He stopped for a moment and then turned back to look at her. "I guess I kinda get how Donnie feels. Knowing that someone else could hurt your friend."

The words caught April off guard, it was so unlike Raph to admit anything. And his words held more truth then she wanted to admit. Guilt swelled up inside of her for yelling at her protective friend.

"Yeah…" She plopped down on the ground, pulling her knees up, to rest her chin on them. "I guess I was kind of hard on him."

"And to be honest, I really should dial it back a little. You've got a fighting spirit that I admire, I sometimes forget that you haven't been doing this for very long… you aren't going to be able to do much help if you get hurt practicing."

"I guess." She mumbled quietly into her arm, as Raph sat down beside her.

"And I know I'm the last one to talk, but you really should take it easy while you heal."

"I know!" She said exasperated, throwing her hands up in defeat. "I just have to do SOMETHING, ya know? I can't stay hidden down here forever!"

April regretted the words as soon as they left her mouth. She had been cooped up for less then a week and she was complaining to someone that would spend his whole life down here in hiding. By the solum look on Raphael's face, she could tell he was thinking the same thing.

"Oh man, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have…" She didn't really know what to say.

"Nah." Raph waved a hand as if dismissing what she had said. "I know what ya mean."

He quietly stood back up and then offered her a hand to pull her to her feet. "I'm callin' it a night." He added, before bowing.

"Ok." She said meekly and bowed back politely. "Goodnight."

"G'night Red." He said over his shoulder as he walked out of the space.

"Way to go April." She muttered to herself and decided that she should go find Donnie to apologize to him as well.

* * *

April padded softly into the lair. The giant space was dark and quiet, save for the sound of dripping water, that seemed to be a constant reminder that they were underground. Raph couldn't have been more then 5 minutes ahead of her, but was nowhere to be seen and must have gone straight to his room.

She frowned again, angry at herself for how everything had played out tonight. She managed to upset two of her closest friends in the matter of minutes. What the hell was wrong with her these days? It was like she was so desperately trying to fix herself, that she was somehow missing the correct course with everyone else.

She followed down the long cement hallway, passing the rooms of all the brothers and leading eventually to Donatello's lab at the end. This whole place was such an odd space, with barren areas at one step and half finished architecture in another. It reminded her of a ghost town, a sad reminder of what had once been elaborate plans of grand staircases and entryways, laying forgotten and abandoned.

Reaching the end of the line, she had been prepared to knock, but found the door to the lab open.

"Donnie?" She asked into the large room.

After the lack of response, April stepped in quietly, unsure of whether he might have fallen asleep or simply could not hear her enter. Which was never a surprise, as he was often welding or hammering or tinkering away lost in his own world with music blasting through headphones.

"Donnie? You in here?" She asked again, but the room appeared empty.

With a sigh, she walked a bit towards the back to make sure he wasn't down the tunnel that led to where the Shellraiser was stored. She could tell at a glance it was dark and there was no sound coming from the depths.

She couldn't imagine where else he would be, it seemed he had been off working on something every day since she had moved in and just assumed that it would be here. She wandered around, not quite ready to leave and hoping that he'd appear if she waited long enough.

She paused in front of his make-shift drafting table, littered in papers and blue prints and journals of notes. She smiled at his adorably messy scrawl covering the various papers, not quite legible at first glance, but perfectly clear once you looked closer.

And that's when she noticed her name on a page that was sticking out from beneath a leather-bound journal. Unable to resist, she lifted the journal to read what was underneath it. It was a list, apparently of Donnie's priorities and projects. Number one was simply scribbled out as, '_Keep April safe_'.

Her heart sank in her chest and the guilt she already felt, doubled in size. He was just trying to keep her safe. Everything that drove her crazy; the over protectiveness, the babysitting duty, even yelling at Raph. It was all part of his master plan to just make sure that no harm came to her. And she suddenly realized just how ungrateful she had been.

It took her another moment before she noticed the footsteps entering the room and she spun around to find the very turtle she had been looking for.

"Hey?" He said softly, a confused look on his face. Obviously wondering why she was there.

"Hey." She responded, suddenly aware that she had never really thought through her apology.

A silence hung in the air as they both stood across from each other, uncertain of what to say.

"I'm so sorry." She blurted out.

He looked into her blue eyes, but said nothing in return.

"I shouldn't have yelled at you." She added.

"It wasn't my place. If you want to get your butt kicked by Raph, then who am I to argue." He returned, with an evident bitterness, obviously still angry.

His snide tone instantly had her on the defensive. "Well, what were you doing there anyways?" She shot back. "I'm a big girl, I don't need you to look after me all the time!"

"You guys triggered my perimeter alarm. I thought it was a malfunction, but was surprised to find you two out there." His tone was angry, but despite April's elevated level, he had yet to raise his voice.

"I'm surprised you weren't following me around! Don't think I haven't noticed that you have someone keeping an eye on me at all times."

"Why are you so stubborn!" He finally yelled. "I can't stand the idea of leaving you alone again, ok!" and then his voice faded back to a normal level. "Not after last time…" He trailed off, not actually wanting to say the words, 'when the foot clan tried to kidnap you'.

He caught her gaze and looking into his eyes, so full of concern, April wondered why she had gotten angry again, cursing herself for starting another argument in the middle of her apology. She reminded herself of the revelation she had just made and shared it with him.

"You're just trying to 'keep me safe'." She responded softly and picked up the paper with her name and handed it to him.

He nodded, while mumbling quietly. "You weren't supposed to see this."

"I'm glad I did. I don't think I even realized everything you have been doing for me. I'm sorry." She paused, trying to think of the best way to explain how she had been feeling. "I… I'm used to taking care of myself. I feel so lost lately and I've been taking it out on you."

"It's ok. I **have** been a little over-protective lately. It's just, your run in with Karai scared the crap out of me."

"It scared the crap out of me too Donnie, that's why I asked Raph to start training me."

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" He asked calmly, hoping not to anger her again, but feeling like it should be said.

"He just told me that he should probably dial it back a little…" She paused and looked over at him. "I don't want you to think that I'm weak."

"I would never think that." He piped up. "Even before you tossed a fully trained kunoichi down a flight of stairs."

He was delighted to see that he earned a grin from her with that statement.

"I'm not protecting you because I think you're weak, I just know that the enemy is very powerful. I'm afraid of Karai and Shredder too, and I've been doing this a lot longer then you."

She watched him speak, and knew that he was being honest. and if she was being honest with herself, she really had to agree.

"And the Kraang may have this unknown reason that they are after you, but this vendetta with Shredder and the Foot; my family brought this upon you and I feel like it's our job to protect you from it." He hung his head a little after that statement. This notion obviously weighed heavily on him.

She placed a soft hand on his not really sure what to say to that. She then smiled up at him. "And I'll try to be more accepting of your help."

He returned her grin and tried to lighten the mood with his tone of voice. "But I will try to dial it back a little, ok? I know that you can take care of yourself. And now that I've set up extra security around here, I'll rest a little easier."

"Sounds like a deal." She grinned.

They stood facing one another, April's hand was still resting on Donnie's forearm. He thought about where he had retreated to after their early fight and then realized that it would be a perfect time to show her what he had been working on.

"So did you happen to see #4 on my list?" He asked with a wry smile, knowing his segue was vague.

April looked at him, her brow knit in confusion.

He handed her back the piece of paper. She looked at it a little more closely, now that he had openly given her permission to read it. The list was entitled, '_Top Priorities_'. At number one was what she had read earlier: _Keep April Safe_, which was followed by _Tighten security at the lair_, _Protect April's aunt_ and then; _Set up a space for April_.

She read through number four and then looked back up at his brown eyes, still confused as to what it meant. "Set up a space? Space for what?"

"Follow me." He said simply. He took the paper back from her and laid it on his messy desk and then held out his hand.

She looked at him curiously and smiled before placing her hand in his and allowing him to lead her out of the room and down the hall.

She had always thought that the lab was the end of the lair, but instead of turning right and heading back towards the rest of the house, they turned left and to a small entryway on the other side of the hall. It was dark and some loose bricks lay scattered around the floor of the opening which made it appear to not be a useable space.

"Watch your step." Donatello pointed out. "I haven't had a chance to get all the wiring done, so the lights aren't working yet."

April carefully stepped over the bricks, thankful for Donnie's hand as he led her into the pitch black. She wondered for half a moment, if turtles had better night vision, because she couldn't see anything. But before she could ponder it for too long, warm candlelight came into view as Donnie pulled back a curtain, that had been covering the next archway.

He held the curtain back and pulled her hand forward, silently directing her to pass him and enter the room first. She stepped in and let her eyes adjust to the dimly lit space.

It was a nice sized room that seemed to be walled off from extending beyond the next set of archways. Looking around, with the aid of the several flickering candles and a small work lamp in the corner, April noticed a desk and chair along one wall and as she turned, she realized there was a small bed set up along the other wall. It hit her suddenly, what Donnie had meant. She spun around to see him standing in the doorway, having let the curtain fall back closed behind him.

"This is your space." He said smiling. "I know it's not much, but I was hoping it would cheer you up to have a room of your own."

She looked at him and then turned back to examine the room again, completely in awe. "Donnie, this is… this is incredible! You did all this?"

"Well, the guys helped me. Mikey and Raph found a bunch of the parts for the furniture. And they all helped me gather your stuff."

"My stuff?" She asked quietly as she moved closer to the bed and upon closer inspection she realized it was familiar. She reached down and ran her hand along the soft lavender comforter. It was the one from her room. Not her temporary space at her Aunt's house, but her actual room from where her and her Dad lived. She hadn't been back since her Dad had been taken, but that one time the very next day to gather her clothes and such. It had been so long since she had thought about her old home, seeing the familiar pieces of it tugged at her heart.

"This is mine." She stated simply and then noticed the stuffed rabbit from her childhood and the framed picture of her and her Dad that had sat on her bedside table. She picked it up from the shelf that it now sat on and smiled at happy memories it brought.

"How did you…?" She trailed off, still completely astonished.

"Well, after we checked in on your Aunt's place and made sure that she was safe, we went to investigate your Dad's apartment. You know, see if The Foot had been there and check for any clues. Anyways, while we were there I thought you might like having some of your comforts from home, so I talked the guys into helping me lug it back here."

He looked down at his hands while he talked, tapping the tips of his fingers together. As he explained everything, he started to worry that she would think that it was creepy they had been at her place or that he was being over protective again. Or maybe she was just feeling crowded. He looked up and watched her as she moved around the room, taking in everything. He wished that she would say something, anything to reassure him that his gesture had indeed had the intended effect.

She finished her second lap around the small space and then turned to look at the person that had done it all for her. He was still standing in the doorway, looking adorably nervous, fiddling with his fingers.

In one stride she was to him and before he could finish looking up, she enveloped him in a hug.

"Thank you." She murmured into his plastron.

"You're welcome." He smiled, a breath of relief leaving him.

She leaned back and smiled up at him. "You really are amazing, you know that?" And she lifted herself up on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek.

Even in the candlelight, she could see him blush furiously and felt the warmth spread across her own cheeks. She smiled to herself and stepped back into the hug, feeling his arms close around her. It was the safest she had felt in a long time.

* * *

**End Chapter 5 - Behind Closed Doors**

**A/N - Ok? So - do you guys like her training with Raph? Did the fight scenes come across ok? I don't have much experience with writing them, so I hope they flowed alright. Any advice in the area would be greatly appreciated!**

**I hope the flash back at the beginning was clear. I didn't actually want to have to say 'flashback starts/falshback ends' ;) **

**What about Donnie? Is he living up to the character you know and love? I want him to be sensitive and caring, and obviously a lot of what he does is because of his feelings for April, but I don't want him to come across too soft. I originally just had April apologize and he was fine, but then figured I'd at least let him yell back a bit. Seemed only fair. **

**I would LOVE to hear what you think. In fact, I'll actually beg: "Please send me a review! Pretty pretty please!"**


	6. Chapter 6 - A Flood of Emotions

**Chapter 6 - A Flood of Emotions**

Raphael had awoken earlier then he had intended. His body had gotten into the habit during he and April's week of secret training sessions. And although they had decided to take a couple of days off, his body was still ready to go at the obnoxiously early hour.

He rolled over and looked at his bedside clock. it was funny, how after just a few days he had gotten used to getting up early to meet April. And what struck him as a surprise, was he had been looking forward to it. It was a completely new thing for him, to be around someone who was not a family member and he found that it was rather refreshing. He enjoyed April's company and was impressed by what a good student she had been. He and his brothers had their way of life written in stone over the past 15 years, and it was the first time he had gotten to feel like a teacher, it was fun and rewarding.

Sure, he may not have thought things through all the way, but April had just been so eager to learn, and hadn't backed down to anything he offered. He never once thought that it may have been too much. And he certainly had no idea that she was still nursing an injury.

He gave an audible sigh as the thoughts ran through his mind. He couldn't really blame Donatello for being upset with him.

Giving up the notion of falling back to sleep, he reluctantly showered and headed into the kitchen. The deep aroma of coffee wafted from the room, pulling him in like a tractor beam. He discovered his brother in purple had beat him to brewing the enticing liquid and found that the lure of the drink was stronger than his desire to avoid Donatello.

Donnie was pouring a mug as Raphael walked in, and he silently slid the mug across the counter to his brother and grabbed another mug from the cupboard for himself.

"You're up early." Donnie stated, while keeping his eyes trained on his cup.

Raph grunted an agreement into his mug as he took a large gulp of the scalding liquid. He knew that Donnie was still angry from the night before and he wanted a couple more minutes to judge just how angry he was.

However, it seemed, despite the early hour, that Donnie was ready to plow right into the discussion.

"So how long have you been carrying on these secret training sessions?" He asked, again without even looking in Raph's direction.

Raph was the type of guy that didn't really get the point of beating around the bush and figured it was best to just lay it all out when the time came.

"For the last 4 days or so, usually in the morning and sometimes, again at night."

Raph noticed the brief surprised look on Don's face, obviously not aware of how much had been secretly going on.

"So you thought that training with Master Splinter and then two more times a day with you was a good regimen for a beginner? A beginner who had just been beaten up by a Kunoichi?" He asked, his tone eerily calm.

"Look, I didn't know that she was injured." Raph waved a hand in the air as he talked. "You know how stubborn that girl is - she was determined to do something! And training was something I could do to help her."

Don's eyed were still on his mug and he silently took another sip without a response.

"I wasn't going to let her get hurt." Raph let out in a huff.

"Oh, so you were 100% certain that throwing her across that cement room wasn't going to lead to any harm?" Donnie's voice had raised, and he looked up and pointed an accusing finger at Raph, his drink now forgotten. "Cause you never get carried away, right Raph?!"

"What are you trying to say Don?! You really trying to say that I would hurt her?!"

"I know that you don't think things through and you take senseless risks!"

"Look-I know what I'm doing ok!? And you're not my mother, or her's for that matter, so stop trying to run our lives!"

Donnie's fists both came down on the counter top, the force causing his mug to shake.

Raph was surprised by his brother's outburst, it was unlike him to show so much anger. But the protectiveness was not new, Don had always looked out for all of them. Raph assumed it had a lot to do with him being forced into the role of family medic. He just wanted everyone to be safe and unharmed.

They sat in silence for a couple of minutes, staring at each other with determination in their eyes.

"I want her to be safe too, ya know." Raph finally broke the barrier between them and he saw the anger leave his brother's eyes. "She was bound and determined to do something, and I figured if I was keeping her busy, she'd feel better. Ya know, get her mind off things."

Donnie's face relaxed and he looked back down at his coffee while he thought over things. He had to admit, that had April asked him to train, (which a small part of him was hurt that she didn't), he would have given in and done anything she wanted if it had cheered her up.

"And keep her from doing something else, possibly more risky." Donnie mumbled.

"Like I said; stubborn." Raph nodded in agreement.

Donnie looked up at his brother and a small smile crossed his face. Raph met his grin with his own. It was their silent way of affirming that everything was fine now, no officially apology necessary.

Donnie took another sip of his coffee and looked back up at Raph. "I guess April picked the right one to teach her, from what I saw, she's progressed further than I had expected."

Raph could detect a trace of hurt in his brother's voice, he knew that at least a small part of Donnie's anger had been simple jealousy that she had chosen him.

Raph gestured to his purple masked brother. "Well, she knows where to go for brains, all I've got to offer is the brawn."

A small smile crossed Donnie's face. The two sat in silence for a little while, both mulling over things in their heads as they let the warm caffeine wake them up.

"So have you finished the 'big surprise' yet?" Raph asked, happy for a chance to change the subject.

"Not quite, but I showed it to her last night."

"Did she flip?"

"She was definitely surprised." Donnie smiled, the recollection of her hug and the peck on his cheek, rushing back into his memory. "Why don't you ask her yourself." He added, gesturing to the entry way.

Raph followed Don's eyeline to the doorway and both were caught off guard to see their youngest brother come bounding into the room.

"Hey guys!" Mikey announced happily, pouring his own mug of coffee and preceding to add at least 5 spoonfuls of sugar before taking a large gulp.

"Ack!" He made a disgusted face. "How do you guys drink this stuff?"

Both brothers were looking at him rather oddly, not quite sure what to think.

"Mikey?" Donnie spoke up and leaned across the counter towards his brother to verify what he was noticing. "Why do you smell like April?"

"Huh?" Mikey looked back from the cupboard he was scrounging for food in. "Oh- I used some of her shower stuff! Doesn't it smell great?"

Don rolled his eyes for not picking up on the obvious answer sooner.

"It's kinda girly for a dude." Raph commented with a smirk.

"Guys can smell like grapefruit!" The youngest shot back, but the other two were full on laughing at this point.

"What's so funny?" Leonardo asked as he entered the kitchen.

He was followed by April, who had freshly showered, wet hair pulled back in a knot and an angry glint in her eye. "ok, which one of you is using my bath products?"

Donnie and Raph lost it again, pointing towards the guilty subject.

"Mikey!" Her tone was exasperated, but not angry. "You don't even have any hair?! Why would you use my shampoo?" She shouted to be heard over the laughter.

"I dunno, I just…." He struggled for an acceptable answer, knowing there wasn't much he could say. "It just smells really good. I didn't even know there was soap like that!"

Mikey's guilty face and puppy dog eyes had already worn down any amount of anger that April had. "Just… knock it off ok? I have to make it last a while."

"Ok, I promise I won't use it again!" Mikey made a motion of crossing his heart.

April had to smile at his expression. She shook her head and made a playful punch to his arm, and stole his mug of coffee.

The three brothers were still laughing and carrying on with jokes about Mikey graduating to using April's makeup and wearing her clothes too.

April leaned against the counter beside Mikey and studied the freckled boy's face. She thought about what a good sport he was to take on the brunt of his brother's teasing.

"It does smell good though, doesn't it?" She leaned in close, so that only he could hear her.

His bright blue eyes lit up and he turned to smile at her. "I always thought you just smelled so good because you were a girl! I had no idea about your little secret!" He winked. The exaggerated gesture got her giggling too and soon the room was filled with hearty laughter that could be heard throughout the lair.

_

Donnie had been determined to finish setting up April's room so that she could move into it that day. And had already been hard at work all morning getting the wiring done.

When April had joined him after their morning session with Splinter (April practicing katas on the sidelines), the one thing he had left, was to install the sink in the corner of the room.

He had explained to her that while he couldn't really set up a separate bathroom, he did happen to have this random vanity and figured she'd enjoy at least having her own sink. She told him it wasn't necessary, but he insisted it was no big deal since they had easy access to the pipes.

Standing next the vanity, April chatted away about this and that and passed tools and parts to Donnie, who was currently wedged into the small cabinet the sink was placed in. She could barely make out a muffled grumbling as he struggled to make the mismatched parts fit.

"Can you hand me the wrench?" Donnie's hand appeared from the cabinet and April leaned over to drop the item into his palm.

She paused to smile at the sight. Donatello barely fit into the tight space, the convex curve of his shell was catching the upper lip of the cabinet, preventing him from moving in any further, no matter how he twisted himself. It reminded April of a kitten trying to squeeze into a small box.

"Do you see the flux?" His muffled voice asked from within.

April searched through the pile of parts and tools that were scattered on the floor around them and found the small container. She slid it in beside him and tapped his arm to let him know where it was.

"Thanks."

Already crouched down, she decided to use his red toolbox as a stool to have better access to the pile of supplies and make it easier to hand him things.

From her new angle, she could see him twisting and squirming in an attempt to change positions and heard a quiet Japanese curse word slip out. She smiled again watching his shell prevent him from moving where he wanted to be.

Never before had she found herself in a position to blatantly look at his shell and she took the opportunity to really appreciate it. She studied the crevices and patterns that swirled around like fingerprints. It was mesmerizing. How had she not noticed before now, how intricate and beautiful the pattern was?

Not really thinking, she reached out and slid her palm along the curve, letting her fingers fall into a ridge as she followed the path around his back.

Don's grumbling went silent and his body stiffened for half a second before jolting. A large thump emanated from under the sink.

"OW! Damnit!"

Her hand leapt back. "Oh Don! I'm sorry!"

He swiftly and smoothly retracted himself from the tight space and sat awkwardly on the hard cement ground, rubbing the bump at the back of his head.

"I'm sorry!" She repeated. "I was just noticing your shell- I shouldn't have touched it."

He glanced over at her feeling a little embarrassed. "You just startled me is all."

"I honestly didn't even realize that you could feel that." She admitted, a guilty blush on her cheeks.

"Oh." He paused for a moment. "It's not as sensitive as skin, but yeah, I can still feel things. From what I've gathered, it's similar to how a human might feel something through their fingernails. Though a little more so for us mutated turtles."

April smiled at his description. It was so very Donnie to expand a simple answer with accurate details.

He turned to climb back into the cabinet when she spoke again.

"I had never noticed how beautiful it was. Your shell."

"Really?" He asked, a furious blush tinting his cheeks.

"And I'm sorry, I shouldn't have invaded your personal space like that."

He shrugged. "It's ok. I understand that I'm different. You were just curious." He smiled to show that he wasn't upset. "It's the scientist in you."

"Maybe a little bit." She admitted.

"Well, anything you want to know—you can always ask me." He offered. And immediately a small part of him panicked, thinking of all the potentially embarrassing non-human type things she could bring up.

"Same goes for me." She offered back, though judging by his face, she could see that he was unclear as to what she meant. "You know - if there's anything you want to learn from me, ask away!"

"Oh!" He said, a little surprised. That had not been what he was thinking.

"In fact," She added. "Why don't you ask me something right now?"

"Oh, I don't know…" He muttered as hundreds of possibilities ran through his mind.

"C'mon Don, there's nothing you want to know about being all human? Something about girls? Surely there's something I could teach you." She teased as she waggled her eyebrows.

He adjusted his uncomfortable seat on the cement as he thought a moment, tapping his chin in an exaggerated gesture of deep thought. "Hmmmmmmm!" He proclaimed loudly.

April gave a look of indignation. "Fine, you brat. I guess the mighty genius knows all." She crossed her arms and pretended to be offended, though her grin betrayed her.

"I gotta give you a hard time when the moment presents itself." He teased back.

She rolled her eyes, still smiling.

"What's it like having hair?" He asked. His tone genuine and curious as he settled on what felt like a safe topic.

April narrowed her eyes at him, looking to see if he was being serious. He simply raised his brow as if to say, 'go on'.

"Well… I mean, I've always had it." She was already chiding herself for her lackluster answer. "It's nice I guess. Another way to be unique and express your own style. But it can be a pain to take care of too. Mine is fine and oily, so I have to wash it every day and my bangs grow so fast, I finally just started trimming them myself…" She trailed off, feeling like she was rambling. And then she was hit with a brilliant idea.

"Here." She reached up and pulled the headband off her head and tugged the elastic free from its bind around her pony tail.

Don watched in awe as her beautiful ginger tendrils cascaded down to land across her shoulders.

"You should touch it. It's only fair." She nodded as she spoke.

"That's ok." Donnie said nervously. It seemed like such an intimate gesture. But his own inner scientist was a little more curious and he gave in with her prodding.

Slowly, he reached and picked up a small gathering on her shoulder and ever so delicately slid it between his fingertips, relishing the silky softness.

"You can't feel this, right?" He asked, now in full learning mode.

"No, not the actual hair, but I can feel where it connects to my scalp. It hurts if it get pulled."

"It's so soft." He muttered quietly, almost to himself. "I've never seen you wear it down, why not?"

"I don't know. It's just easier to pull it back I guess. Plus it keeps it out of my face."

He nodded to her answer.

He raised his left hand to the other side of her face, mirroring the position of his right hand, and slowly ran his thick fingers through the strands, starting from just behind her ears, all the way down along her neck. An involuntarily shiver ran up April's spine from the pleasant sensation.

Noticing the reaction, Don's eyes grew wide and he paused in his movement, his hands resting on either shoulder.

April opened her own eyes, not even realizing when she had closed them. They were sitting face to face, her on the make-shift stool and Donnie up on his knees. She couldn't remember when he had gotten so close. A warmness flooded her cheeks when she realized what an intimate position they were in.

If I barely move forward, I could kiss him. The thought registered in her mind and it shocked her. Wait–did she want to kiss him? Did she have feelings for the boy she had come to think of as her best friend? What did it mean?

Donnie was still frozen in place, his chocolate-brown eyes looking right into her ocean blues. He had merely been examining her hair, as she had suggested, he hadn't meant to get so close. The look he had seen on her face as he had watched her shiver; it had been pleasure. It was a look he had never thought he'd have a chance to illicit. And seeing it had ignited a burning desire to do it again. A surprisingly intense desire that coursed through his body, starting at his core.

But she didn't think of him that way, did she? He had always thought she had transitioned into hanging around a group of mutated turtles, rather smoothly. But she had never given any indication that she had returned his fastly growing crush. Up until the other day in the bathroom, he would have guessed that she was creeped out by his non-human traits, but surprisingly, she hadn't seem phased in the least. And her curiosity today, the gentle ministrations of her fingers along his shell… what had that meant? Surely it was a sign that she was becoming more comfortable around him.

He studied her face again, her cheeks were flushed and her bright pink lips were ever so slightly parted. If he didn't know better…

"Don?" She asked quietly, breaking him from his daze.

"Yes?" He whispered.

A gentle smile played on her lips and immediately his brain was screaming at him to kiss her. Kiss her now before the moment was lost.

He slowly started to lean forward, inching his way towards her, gauging to see how she would react. To his delight, her eyes fluttered shut.

Before he could make contact, a hissing sound broke him from his concentration. He turned towards the sound and from his peripheral could see April also turn towards the strange noise coming from under the vanity.

"What is that?" She asked.

"Oh crap!" He exclaimed, suddenly putting together exactly what it was. "Water pressure!" He muttered as he dove into the pile of tools surrounding them. "Where's the wrench?!"

Internally, he scolded himself as the newly added part gave into the pressure behind it, and snapped out-of-place, causing a wide stream of water to spray out into the room.

April let out a small scream as the ice-cold spray hit the side of them.

Scrambling, Donnie found what he was looking for and dove into the small cabinet and quickly secured the loosened piece back into place and opened the valve above it to relieve the pressure.

He slid back out, landing in a sizable puddle surrounding a dripping April, her hair was soaked on one side and clinging to her neck. Nothing like a literal splash of cold water to the face to kill the mood.

She looked at him, the wetness making his smooth scale-like skin glisten, and started giggling.

He joined her laughter.

He wiped some of the drops off his face with the back of his hand as he attempted to apologize between giggles. "Sorry, I had no intention of leaving that seal like that for long... it wasn't supposed to hold back the water pressure like that."

"Guess you got a little distracted, huh?" She teased.

"If I remember right, YOU were the one doing the distracting." He teased back.

This only caused her fit of giggles to increase. And he had to laugh along with her.

After a few moments, he was able to pull himself together and stood up. His sopping wet knee pads making an odd squishing sound as he moved. He extended his hand to April and helped pull her up onto her feet as he glanced around the room.

"I hope nothing was ruined." He wondered aloud, but luckily the sink was on the far wall and if anything important had been hit, it was only with a light mist.

"it's just water." April brushed her hand through the air in front of her, as if to dismiss the worry.

"Well, here's the true test." Donnie announced as he turned back towards the faucet knobs and turned them one at a time. He smiled to himself, proud to find them both working perfectly, and no extra water leaking out anywhere. "I do believe your room is now finished."

April grinned from ear to ear, "It's perfect."

"Except for this mess." Donnie said as he leaned down to start collecting his tools out of the puddle. "Let me go lay these out to dry, and then I'll find a mop and some towels.

"Ok" April replied, as she bent down to help him collect the objects into his tool box and bucket.

Their fingers brushed against each other as they both reached for the same scrap piece of pipe and both recoiled.

April turned away to hide her blush. "So… I bet you're excited to get your room back to yourself."

"Nah, I bet you slept there more this past week, then I have in the last month."

"I'll come collect the rest of my stuff later today." She said, her eyes still trained on the ground as the last few things were tossed into the bin.

"It's no rush." He replied.

He scooped up the tool box and bucket of parts and glanced at the redhead, who was attempting to comb through her wet strands of hair with her fingers.

The memory of his own hands making the same motion just earlier flooded his mind. He tried his best to act cool and collected, but his heart was hammering inside his chest. Had that whole moment really happened, or had he let his imagination get away from himself, it felt so surreal.

He swallowed in an attempt to keep his voice from cracking. "Well, I'll go find that mop." And he quickly exited, trying to hide the red burning at his cheeks.

Alone now in her room, April plopped down onto her bed, not really caring about the wet seat of her pants. She thought back to the look on Donnie's face just before the pipe had burst. Was he going to kiss me?

And then the thought that surprised her the most, is that she had really wanted him to.

**End chapter 6 - A Flood of Emotions**

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**A/N **  
**Sorry this one took awhile! I have a good excuse though, I started this fic as an extra thing to do after I got laid off earlier this year, and found myself with more spare time then I was used to. And between this chapter and the last, I've started a new job! Hurray! In fact, now I'm so busy I don't really have any extra time. But my muse won't let me drop this. :)**

**And, if you have any desire, I also couldn't help myself and I illustrated a little scene from Chapter 4, you can see it here: art/Adorable-Big-Brown-Eyes-390843343**

**Reviews are greatly appreciated and encourages me to keep up! Thanks for reading!**


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